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Sound Masking & Paging Systems

Lencore Acoustics Corp. offers a full range of sound masking and acoustical products that includes networked, self-contained, in-plenum, direct-field and networked direct field sound masking systems; as well as, diagnostic software that addresses speech privacy and acoustics.

Lencore is committed to providing energy efficient and sustainable products that meet the acoustical needs of Fortune 500 companies around the world (see partial client list), by delivering the highest quality sound masking, paging and music. Lencore Acoustics Corp. is headquartered in Woodbury, New York. Lencore's roots date back to 1972 with its first sound masking patent issued in 1976. Today, its principals have over 40 years of acoustical expertise and over 140 million square feet of sound masking installations nationwide.

What is sound masking?

You can't operate your business in a space that's as quiet as a library, or as noisy as a restaurant. You must add a little sound to get the right "signal to sound" ratio.

Shhh!
You know what happens when you're in a library and you move your chair or tap your pen.

The same is true in our daily workplaces: we're surrounded by too many sounds within buildings designed to be quiet. That, in a nutshell, is why most offices are so noisy.

It's easy to understand why building materials like sound-absorbing wall panels are needed. What's harder to grasp is why adding sound back into an environment gives you control of sound levels overall. By virtue of this control, you improve the functioning acoustics of a space so your employees can speak without having their conversations understood by others (speech privacy); can better concentrate without distraction (greater productivity); and more.

Sound masking provides a constant, fixed level of unobtrusive background sound that is set to cover speech level and soften other office noises, which then do not appear as distractions to the human ear. To be effective, the masking level should be 3 to 5 decibels louder than incoming speech from adjacent work stations. In an open plan office, the STC (Sound Transmission Class) and NRC (Noise Reduction Coefficient) must be balanced to achieve good speech privacy, while the background sound levels are comfortable and uniformly maintained.

Because sound masking is complementary to the speech spectrum and effectively covers speech levels, it reduces the intelligibility of conversations, which makes conversations less distracting to those working nearby.

The Payoff.....what will I get for my investment?

Rapid ROI, Productivity Increases

An investment in speech privacy is a smart investment. A sound masking system will pay for itself in less than one year. In fact, the systems can cost far less than other solutions for absorbing or blocking sound, such as slab-to-slab construction or adding insulation above ceiling tiles.

Productivity increases are proven in workspaces with sound masking systems. Studies show productivity increases of 3 to 20 percent per employee - putting an immediate return on the bottom line. Figure the returns you can realize with sound masking using Lencore's ROI Calculator.

Why does productivity improve? Because having speech privacy means people can focus on their work. (One study showed that poor acoustics increased errors made by data entry staff by 27 percent).